I completely agree. A lot of what my team works on is finding those cases where a 3D view has a very high value. One example is a project we worked on that allows construction companies to use the 3D CAD data for their project as a setting to move equipment through. It's not unheard of for a company to bring a piece of equipment on site only to find it cannot move through a given space because material is in the way. Sometimes a partially complete structure which could've been built later is impassable. This is a situation in which a completely 3D representation is really powerful and the effort can save significant money in the long run.
I think there are absolutely cases where 3D interfaces will blow away 2D ones. We're on the road to discovering those. But the industry has had a tendency to try to take what works in 2D and make a 3D version, often ending with a user experience that is less intuitive and less powerful.
The 3D interfaces that are really going to make a difference will probably take decades to invent/discover. Our 2D interfaces have had literally thousands of years to develop.
It's not unheard of for a company to bring a piece of equipment on site only to find it cannot move through a given space because material is in the way.
This is precisely the kind of situation I was thinking about!
This is a situation in which a completely 3D representation is really powerful and the effort can save significant money in the long run.
I think this is a key criteria for determining what problems should be looked at.
I think there are absolutely cases where 3D interfaces will blow away 2D ones. We're on the road to discovering those. But the industry has had a tendency to try to take what works in 2D and make a 3D version, often ending with a user experience that is less intuitive and less powerful.
The 3D interfaces that are really going to make a difference will probably take decades to invent/discover. Our 2D interfaces have had literally thousands of years to develop.